Judge: Statements by murder defendant are admissible in court

A judge has ruled that a man accused of shooting and killing an Iraq War veteran cannot suppress statements he made to authorities after his arrest.

By Vishal PersaudStaff writer

A judge has ruled that a man accused of shooting and killing an Iraq War veteran cannot suppress statements he made to authorities after his arrest.Stevin Roopnarine, 24, is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of LaVar Watson on Christmas night in 2011.In August, Roopnarine's defense attorney, Jack Maro, sought to have his client's statements ruled inadmissible. He argued that, during an interrogation, a sheriff's detective had not properly answered Roopnarine's questions about his right to an attorney.Maro contended that his client didn't know whether he should waive his right to an attorney.During the interview between Roopnarine and Marion County Sheriff's Detective Brian Spivey, Roopnarine was read his Miranda rights and decided he wanted to invoke his right to an attorney.But later, while Roopnarine was in custody, he appeared to be having second thoughts and asked the detective again whether he should talk to him with or without an attorney.Prosecutors defended Spivey's actions, arguing that the detective had made an effort to answer Roopnarine's questions as best he could. Roopnarine, they argued, was aware of his rights and willingly told the detective his side of the story.Circuit Judge Sandra Edwards-Stephens agreed with the prosecutor's argument."There is no question that Detective Spivey read the Miranda rights to the Defendant (Roopnarine) and Defendant understood those rights," Stephens wrote.In the interview, Roopnarine said that his co-defendant, Ashley B. LeVelle, 22, told him to go through Watson's pockets to get his wallet after he was shot.Roopnarine also detailed how he and LeVelle took a bloody car seat cover, the gun used in the shooting and other items and threw them into a garbage bag and left them at his house.The trio met at the Hollywood 16 movie theater in Ocala on Christmas night in 2011. LeVelle had reportedly met Watson on an online dating site and had scheduled a date that night.She and Roopnarine, who was a phlebotomist at the time, had met up earlier in the day because he had asked for a ride to Munroe Regional Medical Center. Roopnarine then asked LeVelle for a ride to a friend's house in Belleview.He was reportedly in the back seat of the car when LeVelle met Watson met for their date.On the way to the Belleview house, Roopnarine allegedly fired three shots at Watson, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, hitting him in the back of the head and shoulder.He then reportedly asked LeVelle to help him get the body out of the car and dump it on the side of a road.Roopnarine has a different story. He said LeVelle fired the shots and planned the entire incident. He claims he was asleep in the backseat of the car and awoke to gunfire.Roopnarine's next scheduled court date is in early March. LeVelle's is in early April.Contact Vishal Persaud at 867-4065, vishal.persaud@starbanner.com or on Twitter @vishalpersaud.